A Cambodian appeals court has upheld
long jail sentences against two Australians despite their young accusers
changing their stories of rape and sexual harassment.

Bart Lauwaert, 39, a former
English language teacher was convicted and sentenced in 2003 to 20 years on
charges of raping his young maids, aged between 12 and 14 in northwestern
Siem Reap province, the gateway to the kingdom's famed Angkor Wat temples.

Another Australian Clint Rex
Betteridge, who fled Cambodia
before his trial, has also been ordered to serve 10 years if he returns to
the South East Asian kingdom.

Lauwaert denied he raped the
maids, and his alleged victims had recanted their accusations in a hearing
last week saying they were never assaulted.

Nine girls told the appeal court that
the Cambodian Women's Crisis Centre (CWCC), a non-governmental organisation,
urged them to testify against Lauwaert, claiming he would be forced to pay
them money if he was found guilty.

The CWCC on Wednesday denied the
accusation.

Neither Lauwaert nor the victims
appeared on Friday in court for the decision.

"So the victims' denial to
court of appeal (last Friday) is groundless. Bart Lauwaert's denial is also
groundless," the judge said.

"The suspect did commit the
crime as the lower court charged. The court of appeal totally agrees with
this decision," the judge said.

But the judge cancelled
compensation of $US20,000 ($A27,000) that the lower court had ordered
Lauwaert to pay to the victims and their families.

It also struck out a similar order
that Betteridge pay $US8,000 ($A10,800).

Lauwaert's lawyer Dy Borima called
the verdict an "injustice" and said a further appeal would be made
to Cambodia's
Supreme Court.

"It is an injustice for my
client. My client might not be satisfied with the appeal court's
decision," the lawyer told reporters, saying he might turn to the
country's highest court.

A spokesman from the Australian
embassy declined to comment on the verdict, but said he came to observe to
make sure Lauwaert would "receive full rights under legal proceedings,
conducted in a fair and a transparent manner."

Around two dozen foreigners have
been jailed or deported to face trial in their home countries for child sex
crimes since 2003 as Cambodia
attempts to clean up its image as a haven for paedophiles.